AIC Act one

Question 1

lighting should be pink and intimate until the Inspector arrives, and then it should be brighter and harder

Answer 1

pink and intimate

• reference to idiom of rose-tinted glasses(false and unrealistic)
• ignorant to plight of the working class
• jovial and relaxed
• connotations of warmth and happiness

brighter and harder

• inspector is powerful enough to change atmosphere
• like an interrogation
• lighting change mirrors how Priestley wants society to change
• in bright light nothing can hide

Question 2

heavy-looking

portentous

provincials in his speech

• Mr Birling

Answer 2

shows greed

tries hard to impress people

speaks with noticeable accent

• reveals lower-class origins
• insecurity
• lack of sophistication

Question 3

attractive

too manly to be a dandy

man about town

• Gerlad

Answer 3

good catch for a woman

fashionable socialite

never had to struggle
knows what to say and do
good education
mixes in the right circles, belongs in the right clubs

Question 4

pretty girl

very pleased with life and rather excited

• Sheila

Answer 4

naïve and sheltered young girl(not woman)

protected by her family

Question 5

not quite at ease

half shy, half assertive

• Eric

Answer 5

shy - apprehension and nervousness

juxtaposes

assertive - dominance and confidence

displays inner turmoil Eric experiences
- not fully realised and accepted personality

perceived as insignificant

• last to be described
• outcast within his own family

Question 6

it’s exactly the same port your father gets

• Mr Birling

Answer 6

trying to imitate a more prominent societal figure as well as gain rapport

• trying to climb up the social ladder
• cement connections

a symbol of status and wealth
- celebratory mood

Question 7

I don’t pretend to know much about it

• Gerald

Answer 7

less obsessed with reputation, status, image and classism than Mr Birling is

(generational difference)

Question 8

Arthur, you’re not supposed to say such things

• Mrs Birling

Answer 8

disdain for his actions that expose his lack of social superiority
- wants to uphold social niceties and dinner etiquette

thinks lower-classes shouldn't be respected or complimented
- small minded upper-class trait

Question 9

except from all last summer, when you never came near me

• Sheila

Answer 9

seed of suspicion planted that Gerald is hiding something

she has genuine concerns

• in two minds “half playful, half serious”
• covers it with jestful and flirtatious tone

foreshadows the conflict to come

represents the sexism and oppression of woman at the time

• want to speak out and demonstrate they are serious
• gender walls at the time refrained them and forced them to cover up their seriousness with a playful and passive attitude

Question 10

I was awfully busy at the works all that time

• Gerald

Answer 10

repeatedly uses the same excuse

awfully
- connected with unpleasant

belittling and fooling Sheila

Question 11

men with important work to do sometimes have to spend nearly all their time and energy on their business

• Mrs Birling

Answer 11

clear hierarchical distinction between men and women

• patriarchy ideology
• she has internalised the social etiquette of the Edwardian period
• is propagating it

exactly the cycle Priestley seeks to break

Question 12

you’re squiffy

• Sheila

Answer 12

colloquial language
- casual sibling relationship

Eric drinks too much

• immature
• doesn’t know self-restraint

Question 13

What an expression, Sheila!

• Mrs Birling

Answer 13

snobbish 
- alarmed at lower-class traits Sheila is adopting

Question 14

Eric, when you’ve a daughter of your own, you’ll understand

• Mr Birling

Answer 14

foreshadows Eva’s pregnancy

Question 15

we may look forward to the time when Crofts and Birlings are no longer competing but are working together

• Mr Birling

Answer 15

cares more about status and wealth than his daughter’s happiness

see’s marriage as a business contract
- selfish and self-conceited

Question 16

we’re in a time of steadily increasing prosperity

• Mr Birling

Answer 16

dramatic irony

• Wall street crash
• caused a huge recession

Question 17

The Germans don’t want war. Nobody wants war

• Mr Birling

Answer 17

dramatic irony

• discredits Mr Birling’s capitalist ideology
• shows him to be pompous and foolish
• 2nd world war

Question 18

unsinkable, totally unsinkable

• Mr Birling

Answer 18

emphasises the nature of his character

• hubris
• didactic nature

repetition
- looks more foolish

intensifier totally

• shows complete confidence in his judgement
• shows how flawed it is
• Priestly belittling capitalists and saying not trust them

Question 19

Birling lights his cigar, Gerald who has lit a cigarette

Answer 19

how mimics the actions of Mr Birling
- epitome of the capitalist agenda Priestley is against

diluted version of Birling

• will perpetuate a system that is unfair
• following in the footsteps of his capitalist predecessor

Question 20

I might find my way into the next Honours list. Just a knighthood

• Mr Birling

Answer 20

inferiority complex

• trying to prove his family is good enough for Gerald
• comes of as showing off

Question 21

don’t get into the police court or start a scandal

• Mr Birling

Answer 21

foreshadows the events to follow(heavily ironic)

• about to be investigated by a police inspector
• accused of serious moral crimes

Question 22

clothes mean something quite different to a woman

• Mr Birling

Answer 22

treats women in a condescending manner
- misogynistic culture

portrays women as superficial and materialistic
- suggests woman’s worth is dependent on how she looks

Question 23

as if we were all mixed up together like bees in a hive - community and all that nonsense

• Mr Birling

Answer 23

simile

contemptuous and patronising tone

• mocks and chastises socialism
• no hierarchy for Birling to abuse
• would alter the class system that protects the Birlings

Question 24

a man has to mind his own business and look after himself and his own - and-

• Mr Birling

Answer 24

condescending and egotistical attitude of keeping profits only for the private owners
-makes the audience dislike him

selfish, dismissive words gets cut off by the inspector
- symbolises the disruption of the ideology Birling was espousing

Question 25

Eric suddenly guffaws

Answer 25

uncomfortable talking about his father's business social awkwardness - insecure(foil of Gerald)

Question 26

A chain of events - Inspector

Answer 26

outlines nature of moral crime the family have committed - lack of social responsibilty Priestley's mouthpiece - textual mechanism through which the play is able to impart its didactic message shows everyone is responsible for Eva's death

Question 27

it's better to ask for the Earth than to take it - Inspector

Answer 27

it is socially irresponsible to be greedy and take things without permission - what the privileged Birlings are used to laying bare and unpicking their moral assumptions

Question 28

I can't accept any responsibilty -Mr Birling

Answer 28

dismissive and narrow-minded nature towards Eva's death stubborn and will not listen to the Inspector's prophetic message

Question 29

it's my duty to keep labour costs down - Mr Birling

Answer 29

language of economics which disguises the reality of the situation - by keeping wages down, he is condemning his workers to lives of poverty and hardship priestley wanted fairer distribution of profit fairer treatment of workers were treated more fairly defensive, arrogant words - Priestley criticises capitalist system

Question 30

massiveness, solidity and purposefulness "carefully (and) weightily" "a disconcerting habit of looking hard at the person he addresses before he speaks". - Inspector

Answer 30

Priestley ensures the character representing socialism is seen as more powerful than anyone else omniprescent manipulative impression of massiveness

Question 31

these girls aren't cheap labour - they're people - Sheila

Answer 31

first to realise capitalism exploits the misery of the many for the betterment of the few - Priestley uses her as example of people's changing attitudes towards less fortunate(dehumanised and objectified) - dash represents how distance the concepts are for her

Question 32

mummy daddy - Sheila

Answer 32

immature cossetted by her parents shows development and growth later on by referring to them as 'mum' and 'dad'

Question 33

recognises it with a little cry, gives a half-stifled sob and then runs out

Answer 33

very distressed and guilty - opposite of Mr Birling's denial of his wrongdoings - the moment she realises she got her fire

Question 34

we tried to put ourselves in the place of these young women counting their pennies in their dingy little back bedrooms - Inspector

Answer 34

teaching the Birling's to feel empathy - also to society in general Priestley's plea for the rich to understand their role in the suffering of the working class

Question 35

I can't help thinking about this girl - destroying herself so horribly - Sheila

Answer 35

genuine emotions dashes - suggests she is flustered and can't think coherently

Question 36

We were having a nice little family celebration tonight. And a nasty mess you've made of it - Mr Birling

Answer 36

brutally insular to the topic at hand highlights the values he represents - his selfish celebration

Question 37

Now listen, darling for God's sake - don't say anything to the inspector - Gerald

Answer 37

convinced he still has control - assumed power thinks he can shut up Sheila - dominant, patriachal attitude Tries to deny and feign ignorance - arrogant, dismissive, panicked,

Question 38

Why - you fool- he knows - Sheila

Answer 38

understands the importance of the Inspector - has more info than he is revealing leads her to see her relationship with Gerald in a more realistic, more cynical way

Question 39

She'd swallowed a lot of strong disinfectant. Burnt her inside out, of course - Inspector

Answer 39

wry, deadpan, factual tone detailed imagery - shock Birling's to give him information

Question 40

Edna

Answer 40

reminder of the Birling's wealth presence of the lower class - little dialogue - invisible - shows their inequality - mirrors Eva Smith

Question 41

is it the one you wanted me to have? - Sheila

Answer 41

ring - more obsessed with the material aspects of her relationship than her feelings for Gerald. subservient - Gerald is in control